When you go to the doctor one of the first things they will likely do is take your blood pressure. At some point in your life you may be told that you have high blood pressure. If you are like most people you could use a little bit more information about blood pressure. There is a lot of blood pressure info out there, but most of us don’t have any reason to seek out this information until there is a problem.
Helpful Blood Pressure Info
In every person the blood is carried from the heart to all of your body parts thanks to an intricate system of vessels and arteries. When we refer to blood pressure we are referring to the force of the blood pushing against the walls of your arteries. A normal heart beats 60 to 70 times per minute, and each time it beats it is pushing blood from the heart into your arteries. Your blood pressure is at its highest when the heart actually beats, and this is known as the systolic pressure. When the heart is in between beats the pressure is the lowest and this is known as the diastolic pressure.
When your doctor tells you what your blood pressure is, they are going to tell you both numbers. What you may not know when you are given this blood pressure info is that both numbers are important. When a blood pressure it is written one is written above the other such as 120/80, said 120 over 80. The top number is always the systolic and the bottom is the diastolic.
Your blood pressure is always changing based on your activity. When you are sleeping your blood pressure is lower than when you are active. Your blood pressure will also rise considerably when you are exercising, nervous, or excited. During your average waking hours you are going to have about the same blood pressure throughout the day, and your levels should always be lower than 120/80. If the number stays at 140/90 or is higher than that, you have high blood pressure.
You need to pay attention to high blood pressure info that your doctor gives you, because it has risks. When you have high blood pressure you are at risk of having a stroke, heart attack, and kidney problems. In many cases there is not a definite cause of high blood pressure, but there are lifestyle changes as well as medications that can help to control blood pressure that goes too high.






